Luboc River by Jonathan Galicano

Of late, we have all witnessed nature’s onslaught - raging floods that killed thousands and left many homeless, tons of mud that buried people alive, catastrophic landslides and erosions, heavy winds that uprooted trees and toppled homes. All of these are Mother Earth’s response to the abuses we have made, and a very portentous and apparent caveat comes with this: We will all perish lest we do something about it.

This seems to be the message that the University of the Philippines (UP) Alumni Centennial Artists are trying to get across in their last exhibit at the Trade Hall of the Gateway Mall. The group exhibit is still part of the continuing art education of the UP Alumni Association. Although not entirely an offshoot of the Ondoy and Pepeng typhoons, the show dubbed as ‘Kalikasan’ hit home and came out very timely.

Poetic, colorful, and alive, the 113 artworks in the show depicted nature at its best. Wielded and rendered in different artistic expressions, the paintings remind us that the environment should be given the utmost attention and care for the very reason that it sustains us.  They tell us that Mother Earth is inherently good to us and gives us a stunning and picturesque escape when not left to man’s destructive devices. Central to the opuses in the exhibit are pristine falls, vast green fields, perennials, blooms, bodies of water, and wildlife among others.

According to group leader Romy Carlos, majority of the works have been made solely for the exhibit while others have been made several years back such as National Artist Jose Joya’s landscape of Zarraga, Iloilo made in 1980 and National Artist Cesar Legaspi’s pastel drawing of a hot summer day in Iloilo that was finished in 1976.

Notable and memorable pieces include Araceli Limcaco-Dans’ painting of a scene in Batanes titled ‘The Carabao,’ where several Igorots are walking an earthy pathway with a carabao in tow; Vincent de Pio’s almost abstract seascape done with thick impastos of black and with hints of fleshy and rosy tones; Roberto Duldulao’s Zen-inspired oeuvre; and Norly Membian’s artwork fashioned with gestural splatters of paint.

Two of the participating artists in the exhibit are Mar Bongalon and Manuel Gamboa. Known for being a figurative artist, Bongalon captured nature using an impressionistic technique. His works ‘Carillon Receding Light’ and ‘Carillon Sunset’ arrest the passage of time and transient light over a scenic view. Gamboa, on the other hand, painted his hideaway from the bustling metropolis for the show.

Billed ‘Secret Coves,’ the diptych has a childlike and effervescent quality. One can tell that it was done with a fervent passion for colors and play rather than with the rigid rudiments of form and structure.
Come December, Carlos said that they are mounting another Mother-and-Child-themed exhibit. The month will also see the core group of the Centennial Artists staging another show titled ‘Sining Saysay.’ It will coincide with the 50th anniversary of Araneta Center. The would-be suite of paintings will put into murals some of the country’s most significant historical events—from pre-colonial period up to Martial Law.

Works from this would-be exhibition will be hung around the Araneta Coliseum. UP Professor for art history and curator Ruben Defeo will be part of the overseeing committee for this project, said Carlos in a previous interview. Slated to participate aside from Carlos are National Artist BenCab, Janice Young, Gig de Pio, Tessie Duldulao, Eileen Lanusa, Cris Cruz, and Ding Hidalgo to mention a few.

So far, the group has produced six shows in just half a year.

For more information about the UP Alumni Association and the UP Centennial Alumni Artists and their works, contact Ang Bahay ng Alumni, Ramon Magsaysay Avenue, UP Diliman, Quezon City; 929-8327, or visit www.upalumni.ph.